In August 2023, the state parliament in North Rhine-Westphalia decided to abolish
the minimum distance between wind turbines and residential
areas.
This measure is intended to drive forward the expansion of green energy.
However, residents living near wind turbines have been reporting complaints such as insomnia, heart problems,
anxiety and depression for years.
Lawsuits have even been filed against the operators of the plants.
For a long time, both the wind energy industry and the German authorities took the view
that the infrasound from wind turbines was harmless.
However, as early as 2014, the Australian acoustics engineer and scientist
Steven Cooper proved the health risks of
wind turbines by exposing test subjects to wind turbine-generated infrasound.
Complaints such as insomnia, feelings of pressure in the head, ear or chest, tinnitus and palpitations
appeared at the same time as the wind turbines were switched on.
The meteorologist Dr. Eva Wanka also proved in her 2005 study that infrasound
leads to an increase in severe depression and even suicide.
Using the example of 1.8 million test subjects in Munich and the surrounding
area, she showed that infrasound led to a tripling of rescue missions triggered
by severe depression, suicide attempts
and suicide.
Although further studies exist and scientists are pressing for more detailed research into the health risks
of wind turbines, all the results are being ignored and - as is now the case in NRW - the minimum
distances from residential areas are even being lifted.
The situation has gone so far that funding for research applications on this topic is being rejected.
It is not surprising that countries that are among the largest wind farm operators
in the world show little ambition in researching the associated health risks.
By 2019, China had contributed a single study and Germany two, despite having
the third-highest wind energy generation capacity in the world.
Prof.
Dr.
Ottmar Edenhofer, Chief Economist at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, said in an interview
with the Neue Zürcher Zeitung: "We are de facto
redistributing the world's wealth through climate policy.
But if you look at the situation, isn't it about much more than pure greed?
The vehemence with which climate policy is being driven forward is very reminiscent of the coronavirus era.
This is because research into so-called green energy is also thin on the ground and important
facts are missing or even ignored.
Nevertheless, dubious measures are being prescribed and all this without regard for people and the environment.
Obviously, an agenda is also being implemented in climate policy that is not exclusively about economic interests, let alone focusing on the well-being of people.